(SECAUCUS, New Jersey--October 26, 2007) "Real Life 101", a nationally syndicated and internationally distributed television series aimed at the teen/young adult audience, took an advanced class in high-definition production this past summer when the entirety of its sixth season was shot with Panasonic’s AG-HPX500 shoulder-mounted, 2/3" P2 HD camcorder.
HD-acquired episodes will be introduced into the series schedule rotation when the new season debuts late this month.
Real Life 101 features three teen hosts who explore different career choices by interviewing professionals and shadowing them for the day.
The 30-minute show, rated "High for Educational Content" by the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center, is carried in 91% of the United States. Real Life 101 is produced and syndicated by The Television Syndication Company (Longwood, FL). Director of Photography John DeMaio, a principal of television production company Blackburst Entertainment (Orlando, FL), has shot Real Life 101 for the past four years, and purchased the HPX500 in consultation with series producer Cassie Yde.
"When Cassie asked me to start thinking about HD, her major concern was having the best possible quality, a concern driven by strict guidelines for overseas distribution," said DeMaio. "Obviously, this ruled out HDV as a possible solution, and since the demand for HD distribution domestically was currently small for us, spending a great deal of money on equipment was just not an option. After some extensive research at NAB 2007, I found that the HPX500, Panasonic’s newest offering, seemed to be the perfect solution for the series. It fit in our price range, it recorded just about every flavor of HD that you can imagine, and it was DVCPRO HD – a true HD format."
DeMaio described a hectic summer shoot that accommodates the teenage hosts’ school schedules. "Our shooting takes place in two large pieces at the beginning and end of the summer to complete twenty-six complete episodes without burning out the cast and crew," he said. "A typical day consists of between five and 11 interviews shot in as many as five to eight different locations. We shoot entirely hand-held for effect, which also makes it physically demanding for us."
"This summer, I placed the HPX500 in nearly every imaginable situation, from shooting in an extended hook and ladder fire truck to being caught in an overhang on the roof of the Florida Aquarium during a lightning storm," DeMaio added. "I had the camera in surgery, near a flaming stuntman, as well as inches away from an angry alligator at Gatorland. Of course, the extreme heat of the Florida summer is enough to bring the strongest equipment down, but the HPX500 was absolutely flawless."
DeMaio shot 1080 60i onto four 16GB P2 cards, offloading to a Toshiba Tablet PC using P2 Viewer software. "Since we were accustomed to shooting so many Beta tapes during a production day, I had my concerns about keeping up with the offloading of the P2 cards with such a demanding schedule," the DP recounted. "I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was easier than shooting tape. It just takes a different mindset during the setup and strike of each interview as you add offloading the cards into your routine. I suspect that with bigger and bigger P2 cards emerging, I may not offload them at all one day."
"Every interview setup is a challenge for me because each location seems to be the worst possible to shoot video, and I only have about 15 minutes to figure something out," DeMaio said. "I could be on the bridge of a cruise ship with no control over the windows that surround me, or I could be in someone’s office that is no bigger than a bathroom. In the past, I would have to spend a great deal of time finding creative angles to hide lighting obstacles. I don’t have to worry about that anymore.
"For instance, a recent interview found me shooting from one of the top floors of a downtown building here in Orlando, in a conference room with no blinds to control the windows. Without the HPX500, I would have had to shoot with my back to the city skyline, but this time I was able to use it as my backdrop. All I needed was two soft lights with CTB, and it looked like I had spent all day lighting."
"I often encounter situations where the lighting is mixed color temperatures, and I don’t have very much control over the environment," DeMaio noted. "I have found that using the camera’s white balance offset has helped me in at least one such situation each day. Formerly, with my Betacam, I would have to try to mix the white balance myself. With the HPX500 I can just dial in the proper color temperature without having to trick the camera."
"Using the focus assist has made it much easier to achieve a more critical focus," the DP said. "I try to get my focus before the interview for both the host and the interviewee, remembering my position while using the barrel of the lens to mark my distance. But when the host and interviewee are standing for an interview, they always have a tendency to drift away from each other. I can compensate by judging the distance and recalculating in my head how far away I think that they are from me, but the focus assist is obviously more accurate than my math skills ever could be."
"I value the ability to review shots quickly--try doing that with a Beta!" DeMaio continued. "The camera’s audio set-up is likewise superb: being able to set my camera mic to channel 3 and never touch it again is a thrill. Now I know that audio will always be there when I’m shooting b-roll."
DeMaio’s equipment package included an 800x600 HD LCD monitor for viewing, a Sound Devices 442 mixer with Lectrosonics 400 series wireless transmitter, and a Lowell Rifa lighting kit for lighting the interviews, along with a mixture of Arri and Desisti fresnels for back lights and effects.
This season of Real Life 101 is being edited in HD on a Final Cut Pro system, then downconverted to SD for delivery to the satellite uplink station. "The show is evergreen, so the HD masters will serve a purpose when stations make the switch in the next few years," DeMaio noted. The series will start airing in HD overseas this fall.
"The HPX500 has far surpassed my expectations as a viable tool for production. I was definitely not expecting such a rugged design and such a beautiful image for the price," DeMaio said. "This is a camera for people who make their living in the broadcast world. If you have any doubt in your mind, all you have to do is watch the footage. It speaks for itself."
"If you had asked me to switch to a tapeless format for this show two years ago, I would have told you that it couldn’t be done," he added. "However, with this season under my belt I found that not only can it be accomplished, but it has also made my life so much easier in both production and post-production."
For more information about Real Life 101 (including local station listings), visit www.rl101.com.
For more information about DP John DeMaio and Blackburst Entertainment, visit www.blackburstentertainment.com.
About the AG-HPX500
The AG-HPX500 teams the full production-quality of 2/3" 3-CCDs, DVCPRO HD, 4:2:2 sampling and independent frame encoding with the versatility of interchangeable lenses and the creativity of variable frame rates. Offering the highly popular features of the incredibly successful AG-HVX200 P2 HD hand-held camcorder but with many new enhancements, the 8.2-pound HPX500 features progressive 2/3" 3-CCDs that provide a larger light receiving area resulting in increased resolution and sensitivity, superb low-light performance and wide dynamic range. The HPX500 records in 32 high definition and standard definition formats, including 1080i and 720p in production-proven, 100 Mbps DVCPRO HD. The HPX500 records on removable P2 solid-state memory cards in 1080/60i, 50i, 30p, 25p and 24p; in 720/60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, and 24p; and in DVCPRO50, DVCPRO and DV. For more information on the HPX500, visit www.panasonic.com/broadcast.
About Panasonic Broadcast
Panasonic Broadcast & Television Systems Co. is a leading supplier of broadcast and professional video products and systems. Panasonic Broadcast is a unit company of Panasonic Corporation of North America. The company is the North American headquarters of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE: MC) of Japan, and the hub of its U.S. marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. For more information on Panasonic Broadcast products, access the company’s web site at www.panasonic.com/broadcast
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